Political Advertising

News about Political Advertising, including commentary and archival articles published in The New York Times.

Chronology of Coverage

Jan. 30, 2015

The Upshot; digital ads have been slow to catch on in political sphere, despite extensive talk about their potential impact; confidence remains low that ads will reach their target audience, leading to a continued reliance on traditional television advertising. MORE

Dec. 11, 2014

The Upshot; Federal Election Commission records show that political groups not officially linked to specific candidates spent more than $814 million to influence 2014 congressional elections, record for midterms and nearly twice the spending in 2010; increase is likely due to Supreme Court's 2010 Citizens United decision and rise of super PACs. MORE

Nov. 6, 2014

Republican Party's success in taking control of Senate is not only a major victory for GOP, but also a pivotal moment for super PACs and political non-profit groups that helped trounce Democrats across country; over last year and a half, conservative outside groups retooled and revamped, using lessons in how to exploit voter data, opposition research and advertising; all told, Republican outside groups spent about $205 million on television advertising in Senate races, while Democratic groups spent $132 million. MORE

Nov. 5, 2014

The Upshot; midterm elections feature record expenditures, much like every election in recent times; it is worth paying attention to how money was spent and the changes affecting the election system, because those changes will allow groups to reach voters with more specific political messages; 'Super PACS' are here to stay, and result could be a hardening of partisan views and potential creation of new voting coalitions. MORE

Nov. 5, 2014

New York Gov Andrew M Cuomo reportedly raised more than $45 million over past four years; coffers allowed him to flood airwaves and voters' mailboxes with messages promoting himself and portraying opponent Rob Astorino as reckless, intolerant and callous; Astorino, as of October, had raised only $4.8 million. MORE

Nov. 3, 2014

Outside groups, some of them super PACs, are pouring tens of millions of dollars into campaign attack ads and automated calls as Election Day draws near, adding volatility in close races; total spending on Senate races reached $200 million in October alone, significantly more than in same period before 2010 midterms. MORE

Nov. 2, 2014

Senate contest in Iowa between Democratic Rep Bruce Braley and Republican State Sen Joni Ernst to fill seat retiring incumbent Sen Tom Harkin has been endurance test for voters; campaign has become increasingly negative, and roughly six political advertisements are aired on radio every hour. MORE

Nov. 2, 2014

Mark Leibovich First column notes countless candidates in midterm elections seem determined to tout their fitness for office by trying to out-bumpkin one another, styling themselves as feisty populists; observes many of these same politicians resort to services of professional consultants in order to appear as if they are amateurs in their political advertisements. MORE

Nov. 1, 2014

National Republican Congressional Committee is using new technology to track individual voters in real time and deliver specifically tailored ads to their computers and mobile devices; use of technology is part of Republican effort to catch up to Democrat's sophisticated voter targeting. MORE

Oct. 31, 2014

Big Data era of politics has left some campaigns drowning in their own sophisticated advances; they simply cannot produce enough new, effective messages to keep up with surgical targeting that data and analytics now allow. MORE

Oct. 31, 2014

Political consultant Richard Berman says oil and gas industry officials, if they want to prevent opponents from slowing their efforts to drill in more places, need to exploit emotions like fear and greed and turn them against environmental groups. MORE

Oct. 30, 2014

Democrats in the closest Senate races in the South are turning to racially charged messages to jolt African-Americans into voting and stop a Republican takeover in Washington; attacks have been most aggressive in North Carolina, where Democrats have said they need to raise the share of the electorate that is African-American to 21 percent, from 19 percent in the last midterm election in 2010, to prevail over Republicans, who control both chambers of the state legislature and the governor's mansion. MORE

Oct. 28, 2014

Joe Nocera Op-Ed column examines PAC-funded ad campaign against Robin Hudson, State Supreme Court justice in North Carolina; holds campaign is indicative of how private money has flooded the political system following the Citizens United decision, forcing judges to concentrate on fundraising in an unprecedented way; says trend has introduced conflicts of interest and corroded the perception of fairness and the rule of law. MORE

Oct. 25, 2014

Former New York City Mayor Michael R Bloomberg is injecting $1.7 million into closely contested race for governor in Connecticut, with ad drawing attention to gun control bill signed by Gov Dannel P Malloy in aftermath of Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre; Malloy's Republican challenger Thomas C Foley has stated that, if elected, he would sign a repeal of the gun control bill. MORE

Oct. 25, 2014

Text and assessment of New York Gov Andrew M Cuomo's television ad criticizing his opponent Rob Astorino for his support of the Common Core standards. MORE

Oct. 22, 2014

Political ads highlighting energy, climate change and the environment have surged to record levels during 2014 midterm election cycle; they reflect priorities of some of the nation’s wealthiest donors, with Democrats now pouring millions into campaigns to match Republicans. MORE

Oct. 21, 2014

Through a clever bit of photo manipulation, a new ad by the N.R.A. puts Iowa’s Democratic Senate nominee, Bruce Braley, next to the man many gun owners consider their nemesis: Michael R. Bloomberg. MORE

Oct. 21, 2014

Ad Campaign column analyzes 30-second television advertisement from re-election campaign of Attorney General Eric T Schneiderman of New York; ad, which seeks to burnish his image as a no-nonsense lawman, also seems to counter Republican rival John P Cahill's contention that the attorney general has been less concerned with law enforcement than with career enhancement. MORE

Oct. 16, 2014

Federal Election Commission data show that television ads in Senate races continue to be important even as Internet spending grows. MORE

Oct. 16, 2014

Disclosures filed with Federal Election Commission reveal that Republican candidates for Senate have overcome sizable fund-raising edge held by Democratic opponents; GOP candidates and 'super PACs' are now splurging on expensive last-minute advertising in key races, at a time when polling shows Republicans increasingly more likely to gain control of the Senate. MORE

Oct. 14, 2014

Ad for State Senator Wendy Davis, Democratic nominee for governor of Texas, criticizes Republican nominee Greg Abbott, who uses wheelchair, for opposing lawsuits; ad has provoked nationwide debate over its tone and boundaries of political attack ads. MORE

Oct. 14, 2014

Editorial warns unlawful coordination between state or local politicians and outside groups has become rampant since Supreme Court's 2010 Citizens United decision; cites troubling conclusions of Brennan Center for Justice report, such as possibility that a race can be dominated by a single spender; calls for broader definitions of coordination, longer probation periods for campaign workers and stronger enforcement of existing laws. MORE

Oct. 12, 2014

Growing number of political campaigns and outside groups are finding out that premium ad space on the web has been booked; digital advertising is maturing in same way television did, as targeting becomes more sophisticated and definition of viewer expands drastically. MORE

Oct. 11, 2014

More than half of general election advertising aired by outside groups in battle for control of Congress has come from organizations that disclose little or nothing about their donors; advertising is largely paid for by nonprofit groups and trade associations, some of which are established with purpose of shielding wealthy individuals and corporations that contribute; flow of secret money is at center of debate over line between free speech and corruption. MORE

Oct. 10, 2014

Political Memo: Republican strategy in final weeks leading up to midterm elections seems to be pointing to Islamic State, Secret Service failings and Ebola as proof of Obama administration incompetence; their decidedly grim message is that Pres Obama and Democrats cannot keep Americans safe from harm. MORE

Oct. 9, 2014

Number of Republican and Democratic Congressional campaign ads are highlighting tales of candidates' efforts to help voters, told by constituents themselves, in effort to bolster caring images. MORE

Oct. 8, 2014

Michael R Bloomberg plans to leave $25 million footprint in month before midterm elections as part of final push to elect centrist-oriented candidates of both parties; Bloomberg will pay for television ads through his Independence USA PAC. MORE

Oct. 7, 2014

The Upshot; Democrats may seem to be at disadvantage in fight for Senate, but in some crucial contests over the last month, the party has had an edge in ads and in the ground game. MORE

Oct. 3, 2014

Video to promote New York Mayor Bill de Blasio's prekindergarten program emailed to list of de Blasio's campaign supporters, among others, raises questions about whether it was an appropriate form of official communication; video was emailed from City Hall address, under city seal; public servants are not generally allowed to use government email account or official seal for political messages. MORE

Sep. 30, 2014

The Upshot; Democrats, with strong possibility that they could lose control of Senate in midterm elections, are investing heavily in voter turnout efforts in key states, making much greater investments in the ground game than Republicans. MORE

Sep. 27, 2014

Gail Collins Op-Ed column notes rampant fear-mongering in congressional campaign ads, many of which argue that candidate in question is better suited than opponent to protect Americans from terrorists; says ads avoid larger, more important foreign policy issues and instead focus on ideas, like passport revocation or building more fences along borders, based on narrowly-focused fear. MORE

Sep. 18, 2014

New York Gov Andrew M Cuomo and Republican opponent Rob Astorino intensify attack ads against each other as race for governor heats up; efforts are, so far, focusing on increasingly colorful back-and-forth rather than issues with real substance. MORE

Sep. 18, 2014

Ad Campaign column examines television ad by New York Gov Andrew M Cuomo administration attacking his Republican challenger Rob Astorino by portraying him as 'ultraconservative.' MORE

Sep. 16, 2014

Ad Campaign column takes a look at latest television ad coming from election campaign of Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino, Republican trying to unseat New York Gov Andrew M Cuomo. MORE

Sep. 12, 2014

Federal Judge Timothy Black strikes down Ohio’s law barring people from knowingly or recklessly making false statements about candidates in a case that the United States Supreme Court said needed to be heard. MORE

Sep. 3, 2014

Brazil's politicians are creating jaw-dropping advertisements to grab voters' attention before general elections begin in October; television stations in Brazil are required to provide free airtime to candidates during a campaign. MORE

Aug. 8, 2014

Dispute between Alaska Sens Lisa Murkowski and Mark Begich over television commercial extolling Begich's ability to work with Murkowski bursts into view with cease-and-desist letter demanding that he stop using her image in his ads. MORE

Aug. 2, 2014

Political Memo; focus of midterm election campaign advertising across nation is on domestic issues despite spate of foreign crises dominating headlines; when foreign affairs have entered 2014 midterm debate, they have generally been part of Republicans' broad indictment of Pres Obama. MORE

Jul. 31, 2014

Ashley Parker Hot Spots column observes that political and advocacy groups are taking advantage of law requiring all taxicabs in the District of Columbia to have back-seat screens by running ads; notes that taxi ads are seen as a powerful new way to reach the city's influential lawmakers, legislative staff, government aides and lobbyists. MORE

Jul. 26, 2014

Television ad critical of Obama administration's health care plan points blame at Arkansas Sen Mark Pryor and features a small-business owner frustrated by what he called higher health care bills; Pryor, a Democrat, is considered one of the most vulnerable incumbents facing re-election this fall; ad is sponsored by National Federation of Independent Business but largest chunk of money comes from health insurance companies trying to repeal a health care tax. MORE

Jul. 18, 2014

Mudslinging that takes place in many elections carries political risks in close-knit South Dakota; Mike Rounds, former Republican governor now running for Senate, is consensus front-runner, and Democratic challenger Rick Weiland is taking musical approach to temper his attack ads aimed at Rounds. MORE

Jul. 6, 2014

Indonesia's presidential election between Joko Widodo, populist governor of Jakarta, and opponent Prabowo Subianto tightens after barrage of personal attacks; nationwide survey by Indo Barometer survey finds that 13-point lead Joko had over Prabowo before official campaigning began in early June has dropped to 3 points. MORE

Jul. 6, 2014

Mark Leibovich Your Fellow Americans column underscores uncertainty surrounding effect of celebrity endorsements in political campaigns; contends uncertainty has led to every endorsement being treated as if it is big news. MORE

Jun. 20, 2014

Three gay Republicans running for Congress--Richard Tisei in Massachusetts, Carl DeMaio in California and Dan Innis in New Hampshire--are featuring their significant others in campaign ads, sign of growing acceptance of same-sex marriage. MORE